CC MINS 20090203 MINUTES
RANCHO PALOS VERDES CITY COUNCIL
REGULAR MEETING
FEBRUARY 3, 2009
The meeting was called to order at 6:00 P.M. by Mayor Clark at Fred Hesse Community
Park, 29301 Hawthorne Boulevard and was immediately recessed into Closed Session.
The meeting reconvened at 7:02 P.M.
City Council roll call was answered as follows:
PRESENT: Long, Wolowicz, and Mayor Clark
ABSENT: Gardiner (excused) and Stern (excused)
Also present were Carolynn Petru, Deputy City Manager; Carol Lynch, City Attorney;
Dennis McLean, Director of Finance/IT; Joel Rojas, Director of Planning, Building, and
Code Enforcement; Jim Bell, Director of Public Works; Kathryn Downs, Deputy Director
of Finance/IT; Kit Fox, Associate Planner; Eric Mausser, Human Resources Manager;
Ara Mihranian, Principal Planner; Eduardo Schonborn, Senior Planner; Teri Takaoka,
Deputy City Clerk; Selena Wright, Accounting Technician; Judy Huey, Senior
Administrative Analyst; Becky Martin, Permit Clerk; David Arreaga, Maintenance
Worker II; and, Carla Morreale, City Clerk.
FLAG SALUTE:
The Flag Salute was led by Councilman Long.
CEREMONIAL:
Mayor Clark presented Employee Service Pins to the following employees for their
years of service: David Arreaga (5 years); Judy Huey (10 years); Ara Mihranian (10
years); Eduardo Schonborn (10 years); Selena Wright (10 years); Teri Takaoka (10
years); Joel Rojas (20 years); and Becky Martin (25 years). Not present: Francisco
Lopez (5 years).
MAYOR'S ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Mayor Clark presented John McTaggart with the Mayor's RPV Heroes award. He also
made an announcement regarding Neighborhood Awareness and displayed the City's
"Do Not Disturb" stickers, which are available for City residents to prevent unwanted
door-to-door solicitations.
RECYCLE DRAWING:
Mayor Clark announced Recyclers of the Month from the January 21, 2009 City Council
meeting: Josie Martinez and Jennifer MacDonald. He indicated that all winners receive
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February 3, 2009
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a check for $250 representing a year of free refuse service and urged everyone to
participate in the City's recycling program.
APPROVAL OF AGENDA:
Councilman Long moved, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Wolowicz, to approve the
Agenda, as presented.
Without objection, Mayor Clark so ordered.
PUBLIC COMMENTS:
Ken Dyda, Rancho Palos Verdes, Peninsula Seniors, thanked the City for supporting
RPV TV Channel 33 and summarized accomplishments of Peninsula Seniors Video
Productions over the past two years.
CITY MANAGER REPORT:
Deputy City Manager Petru introduced new employee, Eric Mausser, Human Resources
Manager.
NEW BUSINESS:
APPROVAL OF CONSENT CALENDAR:
City Clerk Morreale reported that late correspondence was distributed on Item No. 5
and No. 6, noting that the late correspondence on Item No. 6 was a request by the
claimant to have the item continued to February 17, 2009.
Mayor Pro Tem Wolowicz moved, seconded by Councilman Long, to approve the
Consent Calendar as presented.
Mayor Clark noted that staff needed to update the Council on plans regarding open
actions in the minutes from the last Team Building Meeting with Tom Shanks.
The motion carried on the following roll call vote:
AYES: Long, Wolowicz, and Mayor Clark
NOES: None
ABSENT: Gardiner and Stern
Motion to Waive Full Reading
Adopted a motion to waive reading in full of all ordinances presented at this meeting
with consent of the waiver of reading deemed to be given by all Council Members after
the reading of the title.
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February 3, 2009
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Approval of the Minutes (301)
Approved the Minutes of the September 20, 2008 Adjourned Regular Meeting;
November 6, 2008 Adjourned Regular Meeting; and, January 6, 2009 Regular Meeting.
Border Issues Status Report (310)
Received and filed the current report on the status of border issues.
Household Hazardous Waste/Electronics Waste Collection Siting Liability
Agreement with the County of Los Angeles (1301)
Authorized the Mayor and City Clerk to execute the Household Hazardous Waste and
Electronic Waste Collection Siting Liability Agreement with the County of Los Angeles
and County Sanitation District No. 2 of Los Angeles County.
Claim Against the City by Kathleen Pappo (303)
Rejected the claim and directed staff to notify the claimant.
Claim Against the City by Ana Martinez (303)
Rejected the claim and directed staff to notify the claimant.
Notice of Completion - Palos Verdes Drive South (PVDS) Storm Drain
Rehabilitation (604 x 602)
1) Accepted the work as complete; and, 2) Authorized the City Clerk to file a Notice of
Completion with the County Recorder.
Records Retention and Destruction Schedules (301)
ADOPTED RESOLUTION NO. 2009-07, A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF RANCHO PALOS VERDES, AMENDING CITY DOCUMENT
RETENTION SCHEDULES AND AUTHORIZING THE DESTRUCTION OF CERTAIN
CITY RECORDS AS PROVIDED BY SECTION 34090 OF THE CALIFORNIA
GOVERNMENT CODE.
Register of Demands
ADOPTED RESOLUTION NO. 2009-08, A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF RANCHO PALOS VERDES, ALLOWING CERTAIN CLAIMS AND
DEMANDS AND SPECIFYING FUNDS FROM WHICH THE SAME ARE TO BE PAID.
PUBLIC HEARINGS:
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February 3, 2009
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Appeal of Planning Case No. ZON2007-00593 (Goddard): Request to Overturn the
Planning Commission's Denial of a Proposal for a 6,507-Square-Foot, 2 Story
Single-Family Residence and Attached Second Dwelling Unit on a Vacant Lot,
Located at 5 Cayuse Lane (1203)
City Clerk Morreale reported that notice of the public hearing was duly published, written
protests received and included with the staff report and late correspondence distributed
prior to the meeting, and there were three requests to speak on the item.
Councilman Long moved, seconded by Mayor Clark, for staff to provide a report limited
to staffs recommendation to the City Council and defer discussion of the merits of the
appeal until after the public comments.
Associate Planner Fox provided a summary staff report and reported that staff had not
received feedback from Dr. Goddard regarding staff's recommendation that the item be
remanded to the Planning Commission for reconsideration.
Mayor Clark declared the public hearing open.
Shakil Patel, architect, spoke briefly on the recent revisions to the plan to scale down
the structure due to neighbors' concerns regarding the size, mass and bulkiness of the
project.
Craig Washington, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that he was in agreement with the
Council remanding the item back to the Planning Commission.
Janet Stone, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that she waived her right to speak.
Mayor Clark declared the public hearing closed.
Councilman Long moved, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Wolowicz, to adopt the staff
recommendation to take no action on the appeal and remand the appellant's revised
5,911-square-foot project to the Planning Commission for reconsideration.
Without objection, Mayor Clark so ordered.
PAUSE TO CONSIDER THE REMAINDER OF THE AGENDA:
REGULAR NEW BUSINESS:
Mayor's Appointment of City Council Members to Intergovernmental
Organizations and Associations (306)
Mayor Clark reviewed the assignments of Council Members to intergovernmental
organizations and associations.
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February 3, 2009
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Mayor Pro Tern Wolowicz raised concerns regarding the expanded financial reporting
requirements if he served on certain assignments for the South Bay Area, and he and
Councilman Long traded two assignments to resolve the matter.
Beverly Ackerson, representative of Peninsula Aircraft Noise Safety Information
Committee (P.A.N.I.C.), Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that P.A.N.I.C. requested that a
Council Member be appointed to the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) Committee
Noise Roundtable to receive information regarding current and future plans to mitigate
the aircraft noise impact issues.
Council and staff discussion ensued regarding the following issues: time conflicts for
Council Members due to the number of organizations to which they were currently
assigned; overtime issues if a staff representative was assigned; assigning a community
member volunteer; Peninsula Regional Law Enforcement reorganization at the next
meeting; and, creation of a new committee for the Annenberg project while retaining the
existing Lower Point Vicente Enhancement Committee.
Councilman Long moved, seconded by Mayor Pro Tern Wolowicz, to 1) Appoint the
members of Council to the various intergovernmental organizations and associations as
stated by the Mayor, and modified by the Council's discussion; and, 2) Direct staff to
recommend a community member or other alternative to create a City presence at the
LAX Community Noise Roundtable.
The motion passed by the following roll call vote:
AYES: Long, Wolowicz, and Mayor Clark
NOES: None
ABSENT: Gardiner and Stern
Councilman Long moved, seconded by Mayor Clark, to list the Committee for the
Annenberg Center as an ad-hoc committee.
Without objection, Mayor Clark so ordered.
Councilman Long moved, seconded by Mayor Clark, to bring forward Item 13 (Request
for Waiver of Appeal Fees Related to View Restoration Permit Case No. 203) on the
agenda, waive the staff report, and proceed directly to the public hearing.
Without objection, Mayor Clark so ordered.
Request for Waiver of the Appeal Fees Related to View Restoration Permit Case
No. 203 [Requestor: Dr. and Mrs. Aelony, 3632 Vigilance Drive] (1806)
Planning Director Rojas provided background information regarding the item and
answered Council questions.
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February 3, 2009
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City Clerk Morreale reported that late correspondence was distributed on this item prior
to the meeting.
Ginette Aelony, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that there was much misunderstood
regarding the matter and asked for the appeal fee to be waived.
Yo Aelony, Rancho Palos Verdes, explained the sequence of events surrounding the
tree trimming related to View Restoration Case No. 203.
Lenee Bilski, Rancho Palos Verdes, presented the reasoning behind Mr. and Mrs.
Aelony choosing an appeal to the City Council rather than having an Interpretation
Hearing, and noted that the trimming was not performed according to the Conditions of
Approval.
Planning Director Rojas recounted staff's efforts toward resolution of the matter, since
the Aelonys were not in agreement with the trimming results.
Councilman Long moved to adopt the staff recommendation. Mayor Clark seconded
the motion for the purposes of discussion.
Council discussion included the following topics: the maintenance schedule appeal vs.
the Interpretation Hearing; the trimming of the trees; confidence in the good faith of the
parties involved; the possible refund of a portion of the fees to the appellant; and, the
costs incurred by the City due to the appellant's choices.
Mayor Pro Tem Wolowicz proposed a substitute motion to refund half of the fee. Mayor
Clark seconded the motion.
Councilman Long discussed the criteria in the Ordinance for which fee waivers can be
granted, including the following: 1) the applicant or the beneficiary of the use or
proposed activity is a non-profit corporation registered with the State of California, 2) the
proposed use or activity is for charitable, educational, or other use as defined in the
Ordinance, or, 3) the applicant has demonstrated financial hardship. Councilman Long
suggested that the Council may want to revise the Ordinance to allow for situations
where an award of a refund of fees could be made for staff mistakes, but noted he was
not persuaded that staff made a mistake in this situation. He pointed out that the
applicant did not follow the staff recommendation which caused the City to incur costs.
Additional discussion between staff and the Council ensued regarding a refund or
waiver of fees in situations of financial hardship; financial hardship demonstrated as
financial damage or setback; information from the City Attorney that three votes are
needed for an expenditure of City money; fee waivers had on a case by case basis
been granted in the past; and, a reminder that clarification of the fee waiver criteria was
put in place several years ago.
The substitute motion failed on the following roll call vote:
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February 3, 2009
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AYES: Wolowicz and Mayor Clark
NOES: Long
ABSENT: Gardiner and Stern
The original motion to deny the requested appeal fee waiver passed by the following roll
call vote:
AYES: Long and Mayor Clark
NOES: Wolowicz
ABSENT: Gardiner and Stern
RECESS AND RECONVENE:
Mayor Clark called a brief recess from 8:36 P.M. to 8:47 P.M.
FY07-08 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (602)
Deputy Director of Finance/IT Downs provided a summary staff report.
Discussion between Council and staff included the following topics: frequency of bank
deposits; deposits with financial institutions in excess of the Federal Depository
Insurance limits; bank balance vs. book balance; the City's bank accounts are
collateralized as required; amortized cost basis vs. fair value of investments; the
conservative investments of the City; periodic meetings with the City's financial advisor
regarding the City's portfolios; the straight-line depreciation of assets in the Water
Quality Flood Protection Enterprise Fund; pension plan and the City's participation in a
risk pool with cities of a similar size and same benefit formula as required by CaIPERS;
clarification of limits and sub-limits on insurance for subsidence and flood insurance; the
City's strong and conservative insurance program; the significant increases in pension
costs and the smoothing of those costs over a longer period of time; discounts received
by the City for paying its portion of the pension contribution costs up front; the
management discussion and analysis; General Fund Reserves; capital assets for
governmental and business activities; management discussion and analysis in the
Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) format; and, reinforcement of
staff's more understandable explanation of the highlights of the financial report.
Councilman Long moved, seconded by Mayor Pro Tern Wolowicz, to receive and file
the FY07-08 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) of the City of Rancho
Palos Verdes, and the Independent Auditors' Management Letter.
Without objection Mayor Clark so ordered.
City Council Meeting Schedule --Tactical Planning Workshop (307)
Council discussion ensued regarding items that may be on the agenda for March 3,
2009.
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February 3, 2009
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Councilman Long moved, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Wolowicz, to re-schedule the
Tactical Planning Workshop to Tuesday, March 3, 2009, to follow the regular City
Council meeting that same evening.
Without objection Mayor Clark so ordered.
CITY COUNCIL ORAL REPORTS:
Councilman Long moved, seconded by Mayor Clark, to defer Oral Reports to the next
meeting since only three Council Members were present.
Councilman Long moved, seconded by Mayor Clark, to hear reports on two items from
Mayor Pro Tem Wolowicz.
Without objection, Mayor Clark so ordered.
Mayor Pro Tem Wolowicz reported that attorney and long-time resident Sidney Nabel,
had celebrated his 90th birthday. Mayor Pro Tem Wolowicz also announced the birth of
his fourth grandchild.
COUNCIL DISCUSSION & SUGGESTION OF FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS:
Mayor Pro Tem Wolowicz requested a future agenda item regarding a Los Angeles
County Sheriff's Department Substation at the Civic Center, as mentioned by Capt.
Anda at the recent Community Leaders' Breakfast.
CLOSED SESSION REPORT:
City Attorney Lynch reported that regarding the Monks case, the City Council gave
unanimous direction to retain the Kutak Rock law firm; and, a report was provided on
the VH Property Corp. item and no action taken, with Councilmen Gardiner and Stern
absent for both items.
ADJOURNMENT:
At 9:23 P.M., Mayor Clark adjourned the meeting in honor of John McTaggart, the
evening's recipient of the Mayor's RPV Heroes Award.
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Mayor
Attest:
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City Clerk
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February 3, 2009
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